Projecting MSU's Starting Lineup As Fears' Return Crystalizes Roster
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The roster appears to be pretty set for Michigan State basketball.
MSU fans officially got the news on Wednesday that All-Big Ten and All-American point guard Jeremy Fears Jr. would be coming back. Tom Izzo still has another roster spot open, but there isn't a glaring need for him to address right now on the court. It's late May, too. The portal is barren, and all the recruits are signed.
It wasn't the most hectic offseason in the Spartans' history. Only one transfer came in (Anton Bonke from Charlotte), and one went out (Divine Ugochukwu to LSU). Bonke technically withdrew his name from the draft process on Wednesday, too.
Everything seems to be put together now. Let's project the starting five again after Fears' decision, which basically finalized Michigan State's 2026-27 roster.
PG: Jeremy Fears Jr. (R-Jr.)
We can get the super-duper obvious one out of the way right away. The return of "The Floor General" was the last puzzle piece to put together Izzo's best roster in years. Fears is probably sticking with the NBA Draft in the pre-NIL era as a mid-second-round pick, but he's choosing to stay in college for at least another year and is presumably getting paid quite well to do so.
Fears might be the Preseason National Player of the Year next season. He averaged 15.2 points and a nation-high 9.4 assists per game in 2025-26. KenPom rated him as the No. 7 player in the nation. EvanMiya.com had him third. Whichever site one might prefer, all the players rated ahead of him this past season are now going to the NBA.
Part of the reason I and many others are high on the roster is also that Fears will be backed up by freshman Carlos Medlock Jr. He's the No. 50 overall recruit in the class of 2026 on the 247Sports Composite and will be a valuable scoring guard that Izzo and MSU can lean on whenever Fears needs a breather.
Bench scoring was an area where Michigan State fell short last season. The team that won the Big Ten in '24-25 ranked seventh nationally with 33.6 bench points per game. Last year's team dropped to 178th at 21.2 points per contest. Medlock's game could help bring back the "strength in numbers" slogan.
SG: Jasiah Jervis (Fr.)
The middle three positions get a bit tricky. Incoming freshman Jasiah Jervis might not get the starting nod from Izzo right away, but I think that's where things will go eventually. Jervis (and fellow Spartan Ethan Taylor) just made the Team USA under-18 national team, beating out some recruits ranked higher than him in the process.
Jervis still sits nicely at 31st overall in the class. The main reason I think he fits in the starting lineup is that he's a 6'4" two-guard who will gel pretty well with Fears as a more versatile scorer than somebody like Kur Teng and perhaps Jordan Scott.
SF: Jordan Scott (So.)
Speaking of Scott, I still think there's a spot for him here in the starting lineup. He will still shuffle between the two and the three during games, but small forward would be a good starting point.
This was where Scott was supposed to play last year. He had to learn the responsibilities of shooting guard, which are not much different from those of playing small forward, during the season when others at the position were struggling.
Scott started strong when he moved into the starting five, netting five straight double-digit scoring outputs right away. He hit a bit of a "freshman wall" towards the end of the season, though, finishing with eight games in a row in single figures.
Good things still happen when Scott is on the court, though. According to EvanMiya.com, five of the seven best lineups MSU used last season (min. 50 possessions) included Scott on the floor.
PF: Coen Carr (Sr.)
Coen Carr is also likely to shift between small forward and power forward, but this is where I think he ends up right now. He took a step forward with 12.0 points and 5.4 rebounds per game last season, but there is still some polishing that needs to be done in Carr's game.
That athleticism will always make him a fun watch. His dunks still feel like they're worth more than two points because of how much they shift the energy in the building, whether it's home, away, or neutral. If Carr can truly start stretching the floor, though, it opens up even more possibilities in his game.
C: Anton Bonke (Sr.)
Bonke is the new starting center, and any preseason debate about it would be surprising. Taylor is a very talented recruit with sky-high potential, but this won't be his spot right away. Returnee Jesse McCulloch will also need more time.
Getting Bonke from the portal was a big win for Michigan State this offseason. He's not the flashy sports car portal equivalent some hoped for, but I think he projects to be a very reliable option at the five, mirroring a lot of what Carson Cooper provided for MSU as a senior.
Bonke can stretch the floor (something I think Cooper would've done more of with another year), rebound, rim-run, protect the other rim, and he moves pretty well for somebody who is 7'2" and relatively new to the sport. That also makes him the tallest player in program history.
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A 2025 graduate from Michigan State University, Cotsonika brings a wealth of experience covering the Spartans from Rivals and On3 to his role as Michigan State Spartans Beat Writer on SI. At Michigan State, he was also a member of the world-renowned Spartan marching band for two seasons.
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